In electrical systems, it is oftentimes necessary to attach one or more components to a printed circuit board (PCB). As is known, various techniques have been used for attaching such components to PCBs. By way of example, solder and pressure contacts have been used. Although meeting with various degrees of success, each of these techniques imposes corresponding requirements upon the PCB to which the components are to be attached.
With respect to the use of solder, a PCB should be substantially rigid so that the PCB is not able to bend or flex excessively. Such a rigid PCB ensures that the solder joints do not crack due to bending of the PCB. With respect to the use of pressure contacts, a PCB should be substantially flat so that clamping forces can be properly applied to attach a component to the PCB via the pressure contacts.
In some applications, multiple attachment techniques are used on a single PCB. For instance, solder can be used to attach one component to a PCB, while pressure contacts are used to attach another component to the PCB. The use of multiple attachment techniques on a single PCB, however, can place increased requirements on the PCB. In the above-mentioned example in which solder and pressure contacts are used, additional structure typically is added to the PCB to provide appropriate degrees of rigidity and flatness. Unfortunately, the PCB, the attached components and additional structure form a discontinuous mechanical assembly that can impart undue mechanical stresses on the PCB, e.g., stresses caused by disparate thermal expansion of various portions of the mechanical assembly. Additionally, bending moments can be concentrated between non-continuous portions of the assembly, which can cause PCB trace damage.
Systems and methods for mounting components to circuit assemblies are disclosed herein. An embodiment of such a system includes a circuit assembly, a support structure and a first component. The circuit assembly has a front, a back, a length and a width. The support structure is attached to one of the front and the back circuit assembly, with the support structure being sized and shaped to span at least one of the length and the width of the circuit assembly. The first component is attached to the support structure such that at least a portion of the support structure is located between the first component and the circuit assembly, with the first component electrically communicating with the circuit assembly.
An embodiment of a method for mounting a component to a circuit assembly comprises: providing a circuit assembly; providing a support structure of unitary construction; and attaching the support structure to the circuit assembly such that the support structure substantially spans at least one of the length and the width of the circuit assembly.